by Mark Lingane
Nikola grabbed Sebastian by his collar and dragged him back to the stairs. “Stay here until Melanie gets here with Gavin, she’ll need help with the light,” he said. He handed his lantern to Sebastian and took off into the dark corridor.
A few moments later Sebastian saw another lantern flare up then disappear into the dark depths of the corridor. The water from the burst river had been substantially blocked, leaving only minor points where it was getting through. A small rivulet trickled past and several moments later he heard the splashing of a couple of sets of feet.
Melanie appeared, supporting Gavin, who appeared to be partly unconscious.
“Let’s go,” she said.
“Shouldn’t we wait for Nikola?”
“No, he has other things to deal with.”
They made their way up the stairs, made treacherously slippery by their wet feet, until they reached the door. Sebastian heaved at the bar until he could free it from the catch and they burst out into the inferno that was the city.
There was a flash of light at a nearby building, followed by a loud explosion. There was a whistling sound as something small and dark roared above them. Then another, and another.
“Cannons! They’ve got them working,” shouted Melanie.
There was an ear-piercing screech as a dragon fell from the sky with smoke pouring from its body. It disappeared over the city wall and there was a resounding crash as it smashed into the ground. An explosion followed, lighting up the night sky.
A muted cheer came from the roof of the building as the exhausted team let out a quiet cheer. Moments later the building was engulfed in flames as another dragon burnt it out of existence. Men jumped from the roof, but the result of the fall was just as bad as staying on the roof.
There was another volley of shots from surrounding buildings. The building on fire had given the military a definite target. The dragon had nowhere to go as cannonballs came in from all sides, and it was knocked around brutally until it plummeted down and was engulfed in the flames of the building it had set on fire.
There was a much louder cheer. The cannon teams were already reloading and looking out for the final two dragons.
Nikola appeared out of the low building.
“Two down, three to go,” shouted Melanie.
“You three take shelter in the town hall cellars,” Nikola said. “They’ll protect you.”
The building behind them exploded, its roof launching into the air. Wooden shards rained down around them. The master dragon slowly glided over them, taunting them with its power. It rolled in the air and unleashed another stream of fire into the air.
“Oh, that is big,” said Nikola with the image of the beast reflecting in his eyes.
Thrown emerged out of the dust of the destroyed tesla tower.
“Thrown, bring them down,” Nikola shouted. “And do it now.”
“I lost good men tonight in the tower. Those GSFBs will burn in hell tonight, or I’ll die trying.”
“Thrown, be sensible. If you’re reckless and it takes out that other tower we have nothing.”
There was a chorus of screams. A cannon team abandoned the roof of the bakery as a fireball rolled over them.
“I have a surprise for one of them,” said Thrown. He turned and ran into the second tower.
Above the brewery, a flare rocketed into the air and exploded. Light spread down onto the building and a man standing next to a cannon waved furiously. The dragon turned and swooped in. The man tested his rope for the hundredth time, ran and jumped off the edge of the building as the fire rolled in. The great boilers in the brewery couldn’t take the onslaught any longer. Great vats exploded upwards, collecting the dragon flying above. Beer rained down on the men, who cheered. Finally something good had come out of the night: free beer. The man on the rope cut himself free and ran to join the others.
“That man deserves a medal,” shouted Nikola before disappearing into the tower after Thrown.
31
ON THE CONTROL deck, Thrown was shouting orders. Men were turning big wheels, and a distant hum was building in intensity and volume. The whine of the remaining turbine could be felt through the structure.
“The turbine’s good. Charge the dish,” shouted Nikola.
Men pulled levers and shouted readings from huge dials. Steam poured from pipes running through the control room.
“Increase pressure on the dish lifter. Engage hydraulics.”
There was a great hissing from the dish on the deck. It lifted slightly then remained buoyant as the hydraulic jacks aligned and readied for direction.
Thrown turned slowly, with dark eyes.
The beast was staring straight at him, and the two locked gazes.
The beast’s wings slowed in the moment, its engines straining, one eye dark, one glowing red. It blinked and a red beam shot out of its eye. The beam cut into the pipework and the dish lurched to the side. Steam poured into the room, burning men and impairing the view.
Thrown stood silent and still among the turmoil. He placed his hand on the young solider in front of him who was manning the levers.
“Fire,” he said.
The lightning swirled and twisted around the bayonet, arcing around the rim of the metal dish. The soldier engaged the amplifier and pulled both levers. The cogs ratcheted into position and the full connection to the batteries below was made.
Fire exploded out of the mouth of the beast and blasted into the control room. Thrown leapt to the side and took shelter behind the great stone walls.
The electricity intensified, then leapt out toward the dragon, wrapping around the creature. The beast shrieked and floundered as its wings began to fail. Gravity claimed it, and it plummeted to the ground. The tail sliced into the cobbles below with the body following, crumpling under its own weight. Its head thrashed around and came to a rest, looking back down the street toward the solid city gates. Its eyes flickered and went dark.
“Reading, Corporal, if you’re still alive,” said Thrown.
“Fifteen percent, sir.”
“How long to get to an operational level?”
“Once we get the pipes patched it’ll take two hours, sir, but the sun is rising. Maybe there’s a chance with the cannons.”
“Most of them melted during the night.”
“Don’t we have anything left to use?” asked the soldier.
“That’s it. There’s nothing left. We’re defenseless.”
*
The room shook so violently that bits of the ceiling cracked and fell to the floor.
“That’s it, I can’t take it anymore,” said Sebastian. He stood up and made his way to the door.
“Hey, Sebastian, you need to stay here,” Melanie called out.
“They need me.”
“You can’t do anything.”
He paused with his hand on the doorknob and glanced back over his shoulder. “Time’s running out. We have to do something. And I might surprise a few people.”
“If he thinks he can do something,” said Gavin, “then I definitely can.”
“Oh, Gavin, you’re so brave.”
Sebastian rolled his eyes. He quickly opened the door to avoid being sick all over his shoes from the saturated level of sweetness. He exited the building to be greeted by the first rays of a new day.
“With the new day comes new strength,” said Gavin. The others looked at him. He shrugged. “It was something my mom used to say.”
Sebastian nodded. It sounded like something a mom would say.
*
They looked up to catch a last glimpse of the electricity as it arced out from the tower and enveloped the dragon.
“Yes! How many of them are left?” Melanie said.
They searched the skies.
“Just the big one,” Sebastian said, pointing to the dragon gliding past.
It wasn’t behaving like the others. They had been direct with their actions, but this one appeared to be guided. Someone was making dec
isions then sending it to do the most destruction.
“Oh no,” Sebastian said, “it’s going to finish off the tower.”
He sprinted across the square and down the alleyways to get to the rear entrance of the tower. He ran up the stairs to the control level, taking as many steps as he could.
Men were shouting at each other, trying to get some semblance of coordination. Steam was still rushing out of the tubes, and no one seemed to be attending to them. The batteries were low. There was a heated debate, which rolled out through the observation windows, over whether there was enough to discharge without damaging the batteries. The winning argument seemed to be that they would be dead if they didn’t.
No one noticed as the young boy crept past and stopped in front of the large dish. In the early-morning light, Sebastian could just see another figure standing on the deck below him. He squinted and made out Gavin’s form. Sebastian hid as much as he could while maintaining the older boy in his line of sight.
Gavin stood on the deck with some kind of staff in his hand, his other hand raised in a defiant pose. He had found his old cape and it flapped behind him in the gentle warm breeze.
Then Sebastian felt the pain. It was unlike anything he had felt before, an intensity that was ripping him apart. He dropped to his knees.
From behind the great tesla tower glided the master beast. It turned and narrowed its horrific eyes at him. He felt its energy being thrown at him, bouncing off the dish behind, intensifying the pain. Lazily it swung its tail, narrowly missing Gavin, who had to jump and roll to avoid it.
“Mom, help me,” Sebastian whispered. Tears streamed down his face. The pain was unrelenting. He raised himself up onto his knees and flung his arms wide.
The flapping beast hung in the air, its great wings slowly oscillating, powering its way against the natural forces acting against it. The dragon roared, and flame arced through the sky above Sebastian’s head. He let out a scream and a silent wave exploded outward, spearing from him, bouncing off the dish and toward the beast.
The pain strangling his body lessened. The beast shrieked. Its wings failed to flap and it started to fall to the ground as gravity claimed it. It twisted and dived, then soared back up into the sky.
Sebastian saw a rider, a cyborg unlike any he had seen before, on the beast’s back. The cyborg was staring straight at Sebastian as the beast flew away.
The dragons had been vanquished. A huge cheer erupted from the city as the citizens reclaimed their sanctity. The city was safe for now.
Sebastian staggered down the stairs into the cheering crowd.
Melanie came running up to him. “Ohmygod, did you see that? It was amazing.”
Sebastian allowed himself a smile. “It was, wasn’t it?”
“The way Gavin fought against the GSFB was so brave.”
“Gavin?”
“Yeah, he was standing out front on the platform with the cape flying behind him, with the sun reflecting off it. He was amazing.” She let out a long sigh. “He’s been through so much. He’s so brave. Where have you been? You don’t look well. Did you get scared?”
“No, I didn’t get scared. I was—”
There was a loud cheer as the reveling crowd buffeted them away. Sebastian was knocked to one side and Melanie found herself in the middle of the crowd. She turned and came face to face with Gavin. He smiled at her.
“You were amazing,” she said.
He took her hands and they stared into each other’s eyes. She rose up onto her toes and closed her eyes.
“Well done, lad,” said Oliver, as he slapped the youngster on the back.
Melanie looked away, hiding her face behind her fan. Her hand drifted away from Gavin’s body and she clutched it to her stomach.
The crowd moved on. Sebastian got up off the floor and dusted himself down. He was alone. He sighed and turned to go to his quarters. Standing behind him was Nikola.
“We need to talk,” Nikola said. He turned to leave when there was a loud wailing from the front gate. “But not now, it would appear.”
They both clambered up to the observation deck on the tower. Out over the plains they could see line upon line of cyborgs, marching in unison. Each was carrying a large weapon, angled to the left and up.
“It appears the GSFBs were only the first wave,” Nikola shouted above the timed stomping of the advancing army.
“But we’re safe in here, aren’t we?”
“Notice anything about their marching pattern?” Nikola pointed at the wide arc of cyborgs.
“They’re all in time.”
“Has Albert told you about the destructive power of cataclysm harmonics?”
Sebastian shook his head.
“Several thousand years ago two great but misguided scientists, Professors Jeter and Dower, after observing armies marching across bridges, found that if they all marched in step the bridge would shake itself to pieces. Foolishly, they thought they might be able to do that to the whole world, so they devised an army to do it. Luckily, at the last moment disaster was averted, but this is the exact theory in action before us. The cyborgs plan to set up a vibration wave that will shake our city to the ground.”
At that moment the great wall cracked, with the sound reverberating around the city like thunder.
Several of the older men ran over to the wall and tried to erect some sheeting over the gap. Moments later the temporary wall burst into flames, crumbling to the ground, and the cyborgs started to wedge their way through. The old men fell under the onslaught, having nothing powerful enough to repel the invading army. The cyborgs’ lightguns sizzled through the bodies of the aged men.
All the rest could do was run, but the cyborgs were merciless in their advance, taking down anyone they spotted, whether they were fighting, running or hiding, every man, woman and child. They had only one purpose: the extinction of the city.
*
The walls cracked and sheared. Large metal strips tore along the first weakened point. The cyborgs ripped at the metal, pulling it apart, forging a way through the great walls. Men struggled to find anything that could be used as a barrier. Wood and metal was placed across the breach, but the cyborgs marched through. Some of the smaller cyborgs were pushed aside as larger ones pushed their way from behind and hammered against the makeshift defenses. The metal buckled and the wood shattered. Strong arms reached through and wrenched the pieces apart.
Dark lines of the deadly cyborg forces marched through the wall. They flooded in and spilled out, searching. Men attacked them, but they were so exhausted they were easily cast aside.
And on marched the invading army.
Walking without hesitation. Checking their small black devices. Searching. The cyborgs burst through doorways into people’s homes, smashing through furniture, rendering anyone they found unconscious—if they were lucky.
Sebastian saw them stream past the end of the alleyway. He turned to run to the tower. He ducked down a deserted street, but found a guard posted at the end. He hid under a low seat as the guard turned to investigate the sound of running footsteps behind him.
And on marched the invading army.
The guard attached himself to the end of a passing regiment, and Sebastian took the opportunity to scramble up and on toward the tower. He rounded the street corner and charged toward the stairwell.
The largest cyborg Sebastian had ever seen stepped out from the entrance to the tower. He brought down a sword bigger than Sebastian, in a wide arc, narrowly missing him. Sebastian slid, turned, but half-tripped, half-fell in his haste to escape. The cyborg fired the laser attached to his arm, but it bounced harmlessly off Sebastian’s gleaming chestplate.
Sebastian leapt to his feet and tried to duck around the huge black cyborg, but was met by the cyborg’s arm swinging around, knocking him on his back and the air out of his lungs.
The cyborg was huge. He reached down and grabbed Sebastian by his leg. He dragged him back and wrapped his hand around the young boy’s
throat. Sebastian tried to clear his mind, to focus on the cyborg, but the intensity of the encounter muddied his mind. He lashed out with his foot and twisted away as fast as he could.
The cyborg’s armored fingers couldn’t hold him and Sebastian tumbled to the ground, knocking his head against the wall. His head swam as he fought to stay conscious.
The cyborg placed his great foot on the young boy’s chest, raised his sword above his head, ready to bring it down and finish Sebastian. The cyborg swung. There was a loud clang, and he found another sword blocking the path. Dark, solemn eyes stared up at the defender.
“Not on my watch,” shouted Melanie.
To the surprise of both the cyborg and Melanie, a spear erupted out of his chest. His eyes closed and he toppled forward. Behind him stood a thin powerful woman wearing nothing but rabbit skins. She had murder in her eyes.
“Mom?” cried Sebastian.
32
THE BATTLE WAS brief. Waves of desert walkers swarmed in, using a combination of highly polished steel shields, spears and boomerangs. They ran, jumped and faded through the cyborg army like ghosts. Fast as lizards. Deadly as snakes. It was all over by the end of the day.
A medic was wrapping Nikola’s arm in a heavy bandage. Nikola had absorbed several blows while defending particular parts of the city, and had several buildings fall down on top of him. But still, the library and several important people were safe.
“Commander, it’s good to see you,” Isabelle said.
“Captain, likewise.” He gave her a nod. His eyes were tired, and his face was drawn. But he had the posture of a victor.
“There’s no need to get emotional about it.”
“We missed you.”
“We?” She raised an eyebrow.
“I,” he corrected. He gave her a quick smile. “There’s much to discuss. Please join me in what’s left of my office for a debriefing.”
“Can I get changed first? Rabbit skins are hardly appropriate clothing.”
“If you must, although I can see nothing wrong with it from here.”
She smiled at him. “I see some things haven’t changed with you, Commander. Is Sebastian safe?”